Never repay evil with evil but let everyone see that you are interested only in the highest ideals. Do all you can to live at peace with everyone. Never try to get revenge; leave that, my friends, to God’s anger. As scripture says: vengeance is mine —I will pay them back, the Lord Promises. But there is more: If your enemy is hungry, you should give him food, and if he is thirsty, let him drink. Thus you heap red-hot coals on his head. Resist evil & conquer with good. — Romans 12:14
For too long we have accepted all aspect of evil deeds ‘for the good of America’. War after war, atrocity after atrocity. If America can only thrive on evil deeds, what does that make our nation? Not the nation I grew up believing in, not the nation I signed up to serve and certainly not the nation I want to leave for future generations. We must examine our nation’s actions, not only in the ‘political lens’ measured by economic or material gains, but in the moral lens measured by what is Good and what is Evil.
War Criminals
“Out there, lacking restraints, sanctioned to kill, confronted by a hostile country and a relentless enemy, we sank into a brutish state. The descent could be checked only by the net of a man’s inner moral values, the attribute that is called character. There were a few—and I suspect Lieutenant Calley was one—who had no net and plunged all the way down, discovering in their bottommost depths a capacity for malice they probably never suspected was there.” — Philip Caputo (Vietnam Veteran) , Rumor of War
There are countless examples of soldiers, or groups of soldiers, carrying out massacres (I detailed several in ‘To Save the Soul of America’). It is likely that in every conflict you will find at least one instance of war crimes and murder. It is worth noting this is a universal problem, not distinctly American. In ‘Inventing Collateral Damage’ they provide examples for many nations , China in the Taiping Rebellion, France in Algeria, Kenya (during the fighting with the Mau Mau), The Rape of Nanking by the Japanese and others [1]. We have examples throughout history of people capable of ‘malice’ that many of us could not even fathom.
Warmongers
Smedley Butler warned us that ‘War is a Racket’, Eisenhower warned us of the ‘Military Industrial Complex’ & I wrote about it in detail in ‘War is STILL a Racket’. Yet we have unfortunately become accustomed to, almost accepting of, the politician-warmonger. We know why they promote war, they get campaign contributions or “revolving door” jobs within the military industrial complex. These are the ones whose motivations are easier to understand, they are motivated primarily by money, prestige & power. There are other warmongers, those not raking in campaign contributions or lucrative consulting positions. What leads these seemingly ‘good people’ to push for war?
In ‘To Save the Soul of America’ I wrote “Apathy and ignorance are the government’s primary tool in ensuring unjust wars and the war crimes that come with them can continue.” Today I feel that too many in our society have slipped beyond ‘apathy & ignorance’. Many will see atrocities and work to justify them. They will tuck their kids in bed, say a prayer for their safety and then try to explain to you why killing “the enemy’s” kids is actually ‘good’. It is a level of evil that can leave you without words.
It has become apparent that there are many here, living among us who also have ‘no net’ of ‘inner moral values’. Their rhetoric goes well beyond what is morally acceptable. They will openly advocate for ‘wiping them out’ while not even knowing who we are at war with or why we are at war with them. These stateside warmongers are the near moral equivalent of the war criminals they cheer for. The war criminal carries out the acts, but the warmonger enables them. Worse yet, the warmonger is responsible for not only sending war criminals abroad, but good men and women seeking to serve their country. Warmongers display a particularly shameful form of cowardice as they encourage violence that they have no intention of personally participating in. They won’t be in harm’s way, they wont bear the moral, physical or psychological injuries, their families wont be the ones suffering. It will be those they sent in their stead bearing the costs. While the war criminal and warmonger alike may be so blinded by bloodlust that they are incapable of moral injury, those good men and women in our armed forces will be forced to grapple with the consequences of fighting in another unjust war.
Again, we have historical examples across nations of not only war criminals, but of warmongers. One of the earlier examples, comes from the History of the Peloponnesian War. Upon the revolt (and defeat) of Mitylene, Cleon, son of Claenetus, described as “the most violent man at Athens” advocated for the slaughter of the entire male population of Mitylene and to enslave the women & children [2]. Though Cleon initially won his case, the next day it was reconsidered and Diodotus made the case against, reminding the people that mercy was in their long term interests as well. He narrowly won the vote and the ship, bearing the new, more merciful sentence arrived just after the original order was read, just in time to stop the execution of the order. Later, Cleon again pushed for violence and led to the cessation of peace talks with the Lacedaemonians. This soon backfired as the fortune of war shifted away from Athens. Unlike most warmongers today, Cleon’s bloodlust accidentally landed him military command (against his objections). His first battle was a surprising success (many dispute Cleon’s direct impact other than bringing along more reinforcements), though his second battle brought defeat & his death.
Those without morals have been present throughout history, so it falls to us who (claim to) have morals to hold them accountable. We must not quietly allow the warmongers to have the dominant voice in politics or discourse. We must not allow those who actually commit crimes to do so with impunity. Our failure to stand against both reflects the reality of our own morality. If we do nothing to stop wars, and if we allow criminals to go unpunished, then we must too ultimately be ok with the crimes having been committed in the first place.
The Catholic Church
The Catholic Church’s teaching on war, and the concept of a ‘just war’ are not ‘just’ theology, they are the foundation of the international laws of war we have today. The concept was formed from the work of St Augustine & St Thomas Aquinas and is available in the Catechism (I copied it below as well). Today, the state wants to convince you that matters of war are ‘political’. How can the question of ‘should we kill people’ be a political question before a moral one? Is the Pope being ‘political’ for condemning wars of choice or is Trump et al being amoral in their flippant willingness to kill other human beings.
A Just War
“Let us never forget that our enemies are men. Although we may be under the unfortunate necessity of prosecuting our right by force of arms let us never put aside the ties of charity which bind us to the whole human race. In this way we shall defend courageously the rights of our country, without violating those of humanity. Let us be brave without being cruel, and our victory will not be stained by inhuman and brutal acts” -- Emmerich de Vattel
The first ‘test’ of a Just war as laid out by Thomas Aquinas : “First, the authority of the sovereign by whose command the war is to be waged…. it is not the business of a private individual to declare war…. it is their business to watch over the common weal [good] of the city, kingdom or province subject to them”. [3].
The second according to Aquinas: “Those who are attacked, should be attacked because they deserve it on account of some fault” he goes on to quote Augustine: “A just war is wont to be described as one that avenges wrongs, when a nation or state has to be punished for refusing to make amends for the wrongs inflicted by its subject, or to restore what it has seized unjustly.”
The Third: “the belligerent should have a rightful intention, so that they intend the advancement of good, or the avoidance of evil”. Again, quoting Saint Augustine: “True religion looks upon as peaceful those wars that are waged not for motives of aggrandizement, or cruelty, but with the object of securing peace, of punishing evil-doers, and of uplifting the good…. The passion for inflicting harm, the cruel thirst for vengeance, an unpacific and relentless spirit, the fevor of revolt, the lust of power, and such like things, all these are rightly condemned in war.
Looking at the current war against Iran we look first to the authority, The Constitution does NOT grant the President authority to wage war, it grants that power to congress. Article 1 section 8 of the Constitution states : “The congress shall have power… To declare war, grant letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make rules concerning Captures on land and water”. The ‘limited action’ claim is an illegitimate abuse of power because it is an act of war that relies on the target to avoid escalation, de facto declaring war without congress. We were not under attack, our own intelligence admits there was no immediate threat [4]. When we examine the loss of human life, the depletion of our munition stockpiles and the loss of international credibility we see how costly and harmful this war is for America (see The New Iran War & American Victory for more). This war actively harms the ‘common good’.
The Second point from Aquinas, I refer again to the fact that we were not being attacked nor was their an imminent threat against us. For the third point, I have made it clear that I do not believe we are working for the ‘advancement of good’ by being a warlike nation (see To Save the Soul of America). I’m not going to post all of Trump’s ‘truth social’ posts but they almost directly match what Augustine states are ‘rightly condemned in war’ : passion for inflicting harm, the cruel thirst for vengeance, an unpacific and relentless spirit, the fevor of revolt, the lust of power (see below examples).
Catechism Of the Catholic Church
The writings of Aquinas & Augustine became a foundational part of Church teaching and the current teaching on a “Just War” can be found in the Catechism.
Avoiding war
2307 The fifth commandment forbids the intentional destruction of human life. Because of the evils and injustices that accompany all war, the Church insistently urges everyone to prayer and to action so that the divine Goodness may free us from the ancient bondage of war.
2308 All citizens and all governments are obliged to work for the avoidance of war. However, “as long as the danger of war persists and there is no international authority with the necessary competence and power, governments cannot be denied the right of lawful self-defense, once all peace efforts have failed.”
2309 The strict conditions for legitimate defense by military force require rigorous consideration. the gravity of such a decision makes it subject to rigorous conditions of moral legitimacy. At one and the same time: - the damage inflicted by the aggressor on the nation or community of nations must be lasting, grave, and certain; - all other means of putting an end to it must have been shown to be impractical or ineffective; - there must be serious prospects of success; - the use of arms must not produce evils and disorders graver than the evil to be eliminated. the power of modem means of destruction weighs very heavily in evaluating this condition.
These are the traditional elements enumerated in what is called the “just war” doctrine. The evaluation of these conditions for moral legitimacy belongs to the prudential judgment of those who have responsibility for the common good.
— Catechism of the Catholic Church [5]
Nationalism
“ ‘Here is your king’ said Pilate to the Jews. ‘Take him away, take him away!’ they said. ‘Crucify him!’ ‘Do you want me to crucify your king? said Pilate. The chief priests answered, ‘We have no king except Caesar’. So in the end Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified” — John 19:15
![For God and country [American Legion]](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Xn6d!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6ae3cbc3-fae8-4532-b352-83733d2efe86_521x640.jpeg "For God and country [American Legion]")
In the past we fought ‘for God and Country’ the government has instead decided it would be easier if they were both god & Country. They want you to put your dedication to the state above all things, above your own morality, above your relationship with God. They want you to believe every conflict is ‘complex’ and the morality of it is better left with the state. Don’t allow them to supplant your morality.
Look, really look at what they are selling you. In many cases it is ‘we have to kill those kids by the thousands to secure better trade deals’. When the monster that was Madeline Albright was asked in regards to sanctions on Iraq: “We have heard that half a million [Iraqi] Children have died… is the price worth it?” She replied “I think that is a very hard choice, but the price, we think, the price is worth it”[6]. WORTH WHAT? We gained nothing from those sanctions, she thought it was ‘worth it’ because she viewed it as a display of power. That is the effect of sanctions, quite literally the intended effect. Starve enough people to death that the remaining ones rise up against a government we don’t like. This was the excuse for the decades long blockade of Gaza and we see it today as we ‘strangle’ Cuba so completely that children cannot get access to simple medical care. As if the suffering from sanctions were not enough, we are still actively engaged in a genocide. Israel is still intentionally murdering children with the full backing of the United States. The Department of Justice, which is still violating the law by not releasing the Epstein files has (in my opinion) decided to punish those seeking justice by publishing unredacted nude photos of victims[7]. The government, and certainly the people running it, are not fit to be the moral compass of anyone.
By their Fruits
Beware of false prophets who come to you disguised as sheep but underneath are ravenous wolves. You will be able to tell them by their fruits. can people pick grapes from Thorns, or figs from thistles? In the same way, a sound tree produces good fruit but a rotten tree bad fruit. A sound tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor a rotten tree bear good fruit. Any tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown on the fire. I repeat, you will be able to tell them by their fruits. — Matthew 7:15
“Make sure that no one traps you and deprives you of your freedom by some secondhand, empty, rational philosophy based on the principles of this world instead of on Christ” -- Colossians 2:08
America is not a ‘rotten tree’, the ‘good fruit’ of America were our founding principles. Our love of Liberty. Our desire to live peacefully amongst other nations. The belief that ‘all men are created equal’. These beliefs, and importantly seeking to spread them, not by force, but by example are the fruit of a ‘Sound Tree’.
Despite this, the tree of America is being strangled by the rotten vine of perpetual war, whose roots are the military industrial complex. Even as this vine chokes us, “our greatest ally” encourages its growth. And what are the ‘fruits’ of this vine? How many dead? How many families destroyed? How many children killed? The immense suffering we inflict upon the world is supposed to be ‘good for America’, yet what do we get for our wars? I detail the results in “American Victory”, but in short, we get debt, new enemies, increasing tyranny in the name of ‘security’ and a long list of real harm to America and Americans all in the name of war.
Two Cities
“Which is the greatest Commandment of the Law”
Jesus said: “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second resembles it: You must love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang the whole Law, and the Prophets also.” — Matthew 22:37
“Two Cities have been formed by two loves: the earthly by the love of self, even to the contempt of God; the heavenly by the love of God, even to contempt of self… In the one, the princes and the nations it subdues are ruled by the love of ruling; in the other the princes and the subjects serve one another in love, the latter obeying, while the former take thought for all.” —City of God, Book XIV, 28 [8]
In The City Of God, Augustine states ‘in order to discover the character of any people, we have only to observe what they love’[9]. While individually, I’m sure most of us would reveal a decent character built upon the love of our families, as a nation, as a ‘people’ what do we love? It certainly does not seem to be ‘our neighbor’ or each other, we surely have no love of peace. Is it entirely material gains? Are we that fixated on the ‘love of self’ that we will continue to ‘look the other way’ as our government commits evil in our name? Do we love ruling over others so much that we accept the ‘fruit’ that comes with it?
This is not the path that our founders set out for us. While all of Washington’s farewell address should be read and reread, this portion explicitly steers us away from our current, immoral path: “Observe good faith and justice towards all nations; cultivate peace and harmony with all… to give to mankind the magnanimous and too novel example of a people always guided by an exalted justice and benevolence[10].” He went on to warn “reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle”. As we look at the declining percentage of religious Americans [11] alongside the growing immorality of our government, we see at least some truth in his warning. For America to be ‘great’ again, it does not need a higher military budget or favorably balanced trade deals, but the ‘indispensable supports’ of ‘religion and morality’.
Saint George
When researching Saints as part of the Confirmation process, I started my search by looking for those with similar traits and interests, writing/history/veterans. There were some contenders but Saint George stood out to me. Saint George was a Roman Soldier, his mother was Palestinian, from Lydda, his father from Cappadocia.
His legend goes that he came upon a village that at first sacrificed sheep to a 'dragon', but upon running out of sheep began to sacrifice children. He intervened and slayed the dragon. The town converted to Christianity. Later, he was asked to renounce his faith under repeated torture and refused, becoming a Martyr instead.
An example to us all
Today we have a monstrous 'dragon' that has been sustained by the sacrifice of children and other innocents. This ‘dragon’ is war, the military industrial complex, israel and our own corrupted government. Under our current President it has threatened to 'end civilizations’. Under multiple Presidents, from ‘both’ parties, it has claimed millions of lives in avoidable wars.
Together, we can emulate Saint George & put an end to this madness. Refuse to allow our nation's 'children', our men & women in uniform to be sacrificed to it. Refuse to send good people overseas to do evil. Refuse to allow our souls to be corrupted by its evil. We must 'slay' this dragon to ensure it doesn't reign over us any longer.
It is the duty of every Christian, and every patriotic American, to oppose mass slaughter and to vehemently reject even the threat of 'ending civilizations'. That is not 'good' for America, and it is frankly, pure evil. Reject it and demand those that call for it be removed.
"Any act of war aimed indiscriminately at the destruction of entire cities of extensive areas along with their population is a crime against God and man himself. It merits unequivocal and unhesitating condemnation."
-- Gaudium et Spes 80
Closing
For without social virtues, societies can’t subsist; and these virtues can’t be expected, or depended on, without a belief in, and regard to, the Supreme Being and a future world… —Abraham Williams, Boston 1762
“But the devil, seeing the temples of the demons deserted, and the human race running to the name of the liberating Mediator, has moved the heretics under the Christian name to resist the Christian doctrine” — Saint Augustine, City of God Book XVIII, 51
I ask again what are the fruits of our government today? Death, destruction, depravity… what good? The good in America comes from the people, from those who will not sit silently and passively watch evil done in their name. The people who value the founding ideals of this nation more than the promise of ‘lucrative trade deals’. The people who, like Washington, understand morality as the foundation of a free nation. The people that, by one belief or another seek to make the world a better place by doing real Good with the time they have here.
Saint George was ultimately, like many of his time, asked to renounce his faith. He refused, was tortured repeatedly and ultimately executed, becoming a Martyr. Today, our leaders don’t ask us to speak the renunciation of our faith, they allow us to claim to be Christian, but they demand you don’t act like it. You can’t value the lives of those ‘others’, you can’t object to the slaughter of innocent people. They have to be sacrificed for the ‘greater good’ of GDP or to fulfill the wants of zionist fanatics who are either openly not Christian, or are poorly disguised deceivers.
Do not allow the state to be your idol. Don’t allow it to dictate your morals. Don’t worship at the golden calf it offers, regardless of the form it takes. If we want to fix our nation we must prioritize Good, whether you find cause in religion or simply guided by your own moral compass. To be truly great, America needs a moral foundation to ensure it exists in peace and harmony.
Resources
Rockel, Stephen J., and Rick Halpern, eds. Inventing Collateral Damage: Civilian Casualties, War, and Empire. pp. 68–74.
Thucydides. History of the Peloponnesian War. Translated by Richard Crawley. Revised by R. C. Feetham. Easton Press. p. 146.
Thomas Aquinas. Summa Theologica. Second Part of the Second Part (II-II), Question 40, “Of War.”
TIME. "Tulsi Gabbard Says Trump Is Wrong About Iran's Nuclear Program." (March 18, 2026).
https://time.com/article/2026/03/18/tulsi-gabbard-iran-nuclear-trump/Catechism of the Catholic Church. “Safeguarding Peace” (§§2307–2317).
https://www.vatican.va/content/catechism/en/part_three/section_two/chapter_two/article_5/iii_safeguarding_peace.html#$2D4Newsweek. “Watch Madeleine Albright Saying Iraqi Kids’ Deaths Were ‘Worth It’ Resurfaces.”
https://www.newsweek.com/watch-madeleine-albright-saying-iraqi-kids-deaths-worth-it-resurfaces-1691193The New York Times. “Justice Department Published Unredacted Epstein Files” (2026).
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/01/us/nude-photos-epstein-files.htmlAugustine. The City of God. Book XIV, Chapter 28.
Augustine. The City of God. Book XIX, Chapter 24.
Pew Research Center. “How U.S. Religious Composition Has Changed in Recent Decades.”
https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2022/09/13/how-u-s-religious-composition-has-changed-in-recent-decades/#fn-70301-7
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